Celebrity chef Paula Deen was practically burned at the stake for a careless remark she made in private decades ago, even though she profusely apologized. (Food Network)

By Reid LuskColorado Voices

Earlier this month, the Fort Collins High School student council had a great idea for Spirit Week. They wanted to dedicate a day during the week called ‘Merica Day to show their American patriotism and honor our great country.

The proposal sounded perfectly appropriate, except to school administrators who summarily rejected the idea, fearing that it might offend non-Americans.

The students offered a compromise called “My Country Monday,” but that was nixed, too. It wasn’t until days later, after a public outrage ensued, that school officials finally capitulated and allowed the celebration to go forward under the banner of “America Monday.”

It’s doubtful the school officials who initially rejected the “America Day” idea are unpatriotic. I don’t question their patriotism. Their initial decision to ban “America Day” had nothing to do with patriotism, or even the fact that the educational establishment is a hotbed of liberalism.

It had everything to do with the nonsensical political correctness that has swept across our nation, warping rational thinking and oppressing freedom of expression.Read more…

If people continue to grow and learn and develop talents, they will find their passion and success. (Associated Press file)

By Michael MazenkoColorado Voices

“Follow your passion? That may be the worst advice I ever got.”

This insight from Mike Rowe of the Discovery Channel’s “Dirty Jobs” runs counter to every bit of advice teenagers receive from parents, teachers, and counselors. Yet, it may be the best and certainly most honest guidance they hear.

Now that high school seniors have filed their college apps and patiently wait to see which school will make their dreams come true, and high school juniors plan for the ACT and choose classes for senior year, it may be time to reflect on the belief that our jobs should make us happy and that college majors and career decisions should be based on ambiguous and nuanced ideas like passion.Read more…

Total student debt just passed the $1 trillion mark. Sure, it would be nice to have lower interest rates, but that’s a little like asking the string quartet to play Haydn instead of Beethoven as the Titanic is going under. (Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post)

By Michael AlcornColorado Voices

My daughter is a bright, talented young lady with a heart as big as the ocean.

Unfortunately, the high school senior has been spending an inordinate amount of time and energy over the last several weeks stressing about college. Which, in the way only a 17-year-old’s drama can, means that the whole house has been stressing about college.

The problem we’re having is a philosophical conundrum. Me, the “life coach” parent, wants her to dream as big as the sky and the stars. I really do want her to commit to her ambition of going into medicine, and I want to do everything I can to facilitate that dream.

Me, the teacher parent, really believes in education and higher education and the value of learning for learning’s sake. I want her to go to a great college and have all the wonderful experiences that don’t happen in a classroom. My time in Boulder was invaluable: the friendships forged in late-night study sessions, the commiserating in the practice rooms over marathon preparations and, yes, the self-discovery from the silliness of dorm life and terrible cafeteria food and midnight snow football. I want all that for her (minus a few “experiences” I won’t go into here).Read more…

Cheryl Supino salvages items from a pile of belongings outside the home she share with her husband Kim Schuler on Upland Ave in Boulder on Sept. 17. (Craig F. Walker, The Denver Post)

By Priscilla Dann-CourtneyColorado Voices

On Sept. 11, we paid our respects to the victims of 9/11.

The next day, the sky fell in Boulder.

Schools closed, roads were closed, structures were collapsing, the creek was rushing, a flood was upon us, evacuations were ordered, and deaths were announced. I picked up my cellphone to hear my neighbor say, “I’ve seen fire, I’ve seen rain.” He was checking to see how things were in our home since we all lived at the base of the foothills, having watched flames of fire in summers past and now the new concerns of rushing waters.

Everyone’s day began to look a little different than planned. My husband was home from the university and my son was considering his boss’s request to come in on his day off. Given the bank where he worked was in a flood plain and we were all being warned to avoid driving unless absolutely necessary, he felt unsure. Asking me what to do was not the wisest.Read more…

Emilie Nickoloff, center left, discusses a student’s video project at Ken Caryl Middle School (KCMS) on April 11 in Littleton. Nickoloff, the teacher librarian at KCMS, has received an award from the Colorado Department of Education for her efforts running the library and providing expanded programs to her students. Colorado must be more innovatinve in education, Cindy Anderson writes. (Anya Semenoff, YourHub)

By Cindy AndersonColorado Voices

Every year, Colorado high schools graduate many students who are not college-ready in at least one of the skills that we consider essential for success in higher education. Newspaper articles and editorials describe in detail how many students in how many schools have failed to reach the ultimate goal of public K-12 education, which is graduating from high school with college-level skills.

We assume our high school students will graduate with academic skills that allow them to be successful in college and then go on to establish careers, to be productive members of society, to be able to think critically so they can make sound decisions in the voting booth.

These reports also describe the costs to the taxpayers for this failure of the public schools. One article estimates the annual cost to bring these students to college level in math and English to be $46 million.
Those of us who work with these students in Colorado colleges and universities can explain the cost a different way: a student who is not at college-level when they reach our campuses are less likely to seek help, less likely to perform well enough to progress through college in a timely manner (the Colorado Department of Higher Education defines “timely” as 120 credit hours in four years), and less likely to reach their academic and career goals.Read more…

The belongings of the homeless in Denver, like this left under a bridge along Speer Boulevard, can be found less frequently now that the camping ban is in effect. (Denver Post file photo)

By Sonia Ayana StovallColorado Voices

Every morning on my drive to work, as I get to the point where Lincoln Street and Speer Boulevard intersect, I glance to my left at the grassy area near the bridge for a beat-up pink duffel bag. There was a homeless person who slept there for as long as I can remember, the duffel bag a shield against the sounds of morning commuter traffic. I came to think of this figure as my “pink person,” and each morning as I drove past, I said a prayer that she (or he) would have enough food and water and shelter for the day and that perhaps today was the day she would find their safe place in the world.

After the “unauthorized” camping ordinance was approved by the Denver City Council last May, I was no longer able to glance to my left each morning and find out whether my pink person made it through another day and night. The camping ban prohibits sleeping in public parks, on sidewalks, or outdoor malls like the 16th Street Mall in makeshift shelters, tents or sleeping bags. If they are approached by a police officer, the officer determines whether the person is violating any other laws, and may ask the person to move along and, depending on the situation, give them a verbal or written warning.

According to Denver Police Public Information Officer Sonny Jackson, “When we first went out to clear the encampments, we gave out brochures and let people know, ‘Here are some services that might help you better your life,’ ” said Jackson. “We’ve trained all our officers to know what help is available (for the homeless).”Read more…

An estimated 40,000 people took part in the 20th anniversary Komen Denver Race for the Cure in October 2012. (Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post)

By Calvin Ray DavisColorado Voices

When one of my best friends of close to 22 years told me that she had cancer, something hit me deep inside, and made me fear for her life. But she was so causal about it, like having a bad cold. She hid behind the fear very well to keep me from doubting the “robotic surgery” that would remove the cancerous tumor from her female organs.

“They caught it early,” she said, and the new robotic technology that was guided by a highly respected doctor saved her life. “Thank God I have really good insurance,” she told me.

“Do you think a poor person is more likely to die of cancer then a rich person?” I asked her.Read more…

Would the manager of a big store that supplies orders worth tens of thousands disapprove of time spent on the clock dealing with one woman and her small car? (Gene Blythe, AP file)

By Eva SyrovyColorado Voices

Something had to be done about the relentless morning sunlight that invaded my living room after I’d put in a new window. I wanted light, and got heat instead. So one night after a Tower of Power concert in Cripple Creek, I didn’t just draw a picture of what I wanted to build; I counted out the feet of two-by-fours. I used my bare acquaintance with Pythagoras to figure out how long the roof needed to be: It was the hypotenuse of a triangle after all.

And then it was just a matter of rotary saw and drill and measuring tape. In the end, though, the cover itself was an afterthought, plywood covered in tar paper roofing that began to fray almost immediately in the ferocious foothill winds. I tried nails and glue, bricks and rocks to hold it down, but there was always warped plywood showing under the flapping sticky tar paper.

I went to a party at a friend’s house, and there was my solution! Polycarbonate panels, corrugated to let the rain and snow run off; he told me he’d put them up in a weekend. So when the school year ended, I began to investigate my options.Read more…

The Labour Party, which currently holds a coalition majority in Australia’s Parliament, ousted its current Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, and replaced her with a new Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd. That Rudd was the former Labour Prime Minister, defeated by Gillard herself three years earlier, is just the kind of political soap opera the Australians love. (Mark Graham, Associated Press)

By Pamela GreenColorado Voices

It’s always interesting to observe politics in action, particularly when you’re visiting another country. We in America tend to think we have a monopoly on political gamesmanship, outrageous politicians, and scandalous behavior. Truth is, we’re well behind the curve. New York congressman texts nude pictures? Puh-leeze. Your average British MP would be laughed out of the House of Commons for any scandal smaller than a same-sex affair with a Russian spy. And he’d better have leaked MI-6 secrets in the process, or we’re not interested.

Like its British counterpart, the Australian political theater is much more colorful than ours. During my recent visit to Australia, the government managed to engineer a bloodless coup for my entertainment. The Labour party, which currently holds a coalition majority in Parliament, ousted its current prime minister, Julia Gillard, and replaced her with a new prime minister, Kevin Rudd. That Rudd was the former Labour prime minister, defeated by Gillard herself three years earlier, is just the kind of political soap opera the Australians love.Read more…

Zamay Khan, age 8, and his younger brother Azat Khan, age 6, were killed in a hit-and-run accident in Denver on March 22. The two young boys were killed crossing 14th Avenue at Yosemite Street on the way to their Aurora apartment after visiting family in the area. Their mother was also injured. (Family photo, Special to The Denver Post)

By Calvin Ray DavisColorado Voices

It was May 9, 1996, my mother’s birthday, the week of Mother’s Day, and I was a long long way from home.

I punched the numbers into the payphone in Palm Springs, Calif. It was impossible to get a hold of anyone, until I finally reached one of the younger members of my family, who was taking care of all the toddlers. “We’ve tried to get a hold of you for a week. There’s been a bad car accident. Great Aunt Gert is dead, little Megan is dead, and Aunt Charlotte is in a coma.”

I made her repeat herself three times, for I really didn’t believe her. It’s something you hear in hushed conversations, something you read in fiction, or see in a movie. It’s not supposed to happen in real life.

I quit my job and drove three straight days to get home for family support and hospital stays with my aunt, who was much more like a sister to me.Read more…

Vincent Carroll is The Denver Post's editorial page editor. He has been writing commentary on politics and public policy in Colorado since 1982 and was originally with the Rocky Mountain News, where he was also editor of the editorial pages until that newspaper gave up the ghost in 2009.

Guidelines: The Post welcomes letters up to 150 words on topics of general interest. Letters must include full name, home address, day and evening phone numbers, and may be edited for length, grammar and accuracy.

To reach the Denver Post editorial page by phone: 303-954-1331

Posts by Category

Posts by Category

Idea Log Archives

Idea Log Archives

About The Idea Log

The idea log The Denver Post editorial board shares commentary and opinion on issues of interest to Coloradans.